Overview
- Argentina recovered from a 2-0 deficit to win 3-2 against Egypt in Atlanta on Tuesday, scoring three times in the final 13 minutes to secure a quarterfinal place.
- Lionel Messi played the decisive role by assisting Cristian Romero, scoring the equaliser and extending his tournament tally to eight goals and his World Cup career total to 21.
- Enzo Fernández headed the stoppage-time winner to complete the comeback and send Argentina on to face the winner of Switzerland v Colombia in the last eight.
- Egypt produced a standout knockout performance, with goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir making a crucial penalty save and Mostafa Ziko scoring, but a VAR review disallowed an earlier Egypt goal for a foul on Lisandro Martínez and officials were later criticised for not reviewing a contested foul in the build-up to the winner.
- The result keeps Argentina’s title defence alive but continues a pattern of narrow escapes for favourites at this World Cup and keeps VAR and refereeing decisions at the centre of postmatch debate.